1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to singles sticks as defined by the official tennis rules of the United States Tennis Association (U.S.T.A.), which was organized in 1881, as follows: "The court . . . shall be divided across the middle by a net suspended from a cord or metal cable . . . the ends of which shall be attached to, or pass over, the top of the two posts . . . the centers of the two posts shall be 0.914 m (3 ft) outside the court and the height of the posts shall be such that the top of the cord or metal shall be 1.07 m (3 ft 6 in) above the ground . . . When combined doubles . . . and singles court with a doubles net is used for singles, the net must be supported to a height of 1.07 m (3 ft 6 in) by means of two posts, called "singles sticks", which shall be not more than 7.5 cm (3 in) square or 7.5 cm ( 3 in) in diameter . . . The centers of the singles sticks shall be 0.914 m (3 ft 6 in) outside the singles court on each side . . . There shall be a band covering the cord or metal cable and the top of the net of not less than 5 cm (2 in) nor more than 6.3 cm (21/2 in) in depth on each side . . . "
2. Description of Prior Art
Application is aware of some patents relating to improved singles sticks, namely, U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,998 to Shannon, Jr., and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,291,875 and 4,440,393 to Smith.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,998 describes a singles stick with an attachment connected to the net post.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,291,875 and 4,440,393 describe a singles stick that is split vertically up the middle.
While various types of singles sticks have been used by tennis players for over a hundred years, they have a number of disadvantages. Heretofore, singles sticks have been too long, too heavy, and too awkwardly constructed to be conveniently carried by players in their equipment tote bag, measurement devices have had to be either provided separately, or, when attached to the singles stick, they have tended to make the singles stick even more heavy and awkwardly constructed, and, prior art singles sticks have not provided players with a singles stick that has a mechanism for adjusting the depth of the slot, notch, or groove, to accommodate the various widths of net bands authorized by U.S.T.A. tennis rules, independent of attachments or separate measuring devices.
The prior art correctly points out that singles sticks are usually unavailable at public courts, and even when singles sticks are supposed to be available at clubs and other court locations, they are usually difficult or impossible to find, which is the reason most players must provide their own singles sticks for practice and play.
Most players carry an equipment tote bag with them when they play or practice in order to provide a convenient place to store their equipment for safe keeping and protection from loss. Unfortunately, heretofore, singles sticks have been too long, too heavy, and too awkwardly constructed to be conveniently carried by most players in their equipment tote bag. This major defect in the prior art has been a significant factor in contributing most players simply do not practice or play with nets supported with singles sticks, which has contributed to the difficulty most players have in trying to fine tune their skill level to effectively compete with players who regularly practice and play with nets supported by singles sticks.
My invention solves this problem by making available to ordinary players around the world an improved singles stick that uses a variety of light weight materials sectioned into pieces (18) and (26) short enough to be safely and conveniently fitted into most of the commonly used equipment tote bags used by tennis players.
Another disadvantage of prior art singles sticks is that prior art singles sticks themselves, independent of attachments of separate measuring devices, do not provide players with a convenient, quick, and easy to use means for measuring the required distance from the singles side line for correct placement of the singles stick at the net.
The prior art is correct in pointing out that when a court is converted from doubles to singles play that precise measurement is needed to properly position the singles stick at the net, and, that marks made on the court are usually ineffective because such marks can quickly vanish. However, while the prior art describes a means for providing accurate placement of an improved singles stick that is attached to the net post (46), such an attachment does not provide a means for its use independently from attachment to the net post (46). Furthermore, such a singles stick is even heavier and more awkwardly constructed than most conventional prior art singles sticks, and, most players are not ordinarily willing to carry such long, heavy, and awkwardly constructed equipment with them when they practice or play, and, they find it often inconvenient and time consuming to continually have to connect attachments to the net post every time they change courts.
My invention, being light weight and convenient to carry in most player's equipment tote bag, solves the measurement problem by providing players with an improved singles stick that has a simple, easy to use strategic measurement mark (40) on the singles stick itself, completely independent of any attachments or separate measuring devices.
Another problem with prior art singles sticks is that they can not be adjusted to accommodate the various widths of net bands allowed by U.S.T.A. tennis rules. While some of the prior art solves this problem by simply letting the net band fall to its natural length between split sticks, and, using notched grooves to support the net cable, rather than the net bands, these singles sticks, like other prior art singles sticks, are too long to fit conveniently in most player's equipment tote bags. Whereas, my improved singles sticks are not only convenient to carry in most equipment tote bags, my improved singles sticks provide a quick and simple means for installing the singles stick as well as provide a means for quickly and easily adjusting the height adjustment mechanism to support the net band, regardless of its width, which allows any width net band to fit securely into the slot (10) without having to spend unnecessary time securing two separate split sticks to the net.
Furthermore, most other prior art singles sticks usually require that players jam the net band down into a fixed depth groove which can cause the net band to pop up thereby altering the net height undesirably, or, the net may even pop completely out of the groove altogether. My invention solves this problem by providing the player with an improved singles stick that has an adjustable depth slot (10) that will receive any width net band at its natural length by simply making a quick and easy adjustment to the height adjustment mechanism (9).
Thus, while prior art singles sticks are effective for the purpose for which they are intended, the prior art does not provide tennis players with a single stick that is sectioned (18) and (26) so it can be easily and conveniently carried in the player's equipment tote bag for safe and convenient availability whenever and where ever it is needed, nor does prior art provide players with a singles stick that has a height adjustment mechanism (9) that will adjust to accommodate any size net band authorized by U.S.T.A. tennis rules, nor does prior art provide tennis players with a singles stick that has a simple, easy to use strategic measurement mark (40) on the singles stick itself completely independent of any attachments or separate measuring devices.